Of Black Steel and Cherry Blossoms
by KuroxSaku
Summary: KuroganexSakura, Completed  - When Sakura and Kurogane get into an awkward situtation, an unexplainable feeling will emerge. This feeling could turn into love. If only the mage and the kid don't find out...
1. The Accident

It was quiet in the dark house. Not quiet as if something bad's about to happen. This was the quiet you could take a nap in, and that was exactly what the princess was doing. Kurogane watched over the girl. He had nothing better to do. The mage and the kid had left him here, to watch over there. _'Why me? Doesn't the kid fit this kind of job?' _Kurogane thought, irritably. The mage and the kid had been gone for an hour or two, leaving him alone with Sakura. Kurogane had nearly fallen asleep when he heard a voice. His eyes snapped open, only to find that it was Sakura talking in her sleep. She was mumbling something about needing help. The princess was also tossing and turning. _'Just a nightmare? That's what kept me from sleeping?! A nightmare?!?!' _He thought, as he irritably looked at her. He grumbled something about the kid definitely being better suited for this sort of job, as he stood up and walked to the princess. He kneeled by her bed. He looked at her, and noticed there was sweat covering her head. "Hey." He said, trying to wake Sakura up. It didn't work. "Hey, Sakura." He said. She still didn't wake up. "Sakura, wake up!" He said, losing his temper.

The girl jolted up. "Syaoran-kun! He's hurt!" She said, nervously. As the princess tried to get up, she fell out of bed, landing on Kurogane. Kurogane was a little annoyed by being put in the awkward position. Sakura, on the other hand, was blushing like crazy. "K-Kurogane-san..." She said, blushing even more when she realized who she landed on. And, in less than a few seconds, she was off of him. "I-I'm very sorry! Please, forgive me!" She said, nervously.

Kurogane merely grunted, as if to say he understood. "It was only a nightmare..." Kurogane said calmly, as he stood up.

Sakura looked up at him. "What?" She asked, not quite understand what Kurogane was saying.

"You were having a nightmare. That's why I woke you up." He said, calmly. 'Well, at least the kid and that damn mage aren't here.' He thought, not even wanting to imagine how badly the situation would've turned out if they were there. Then, suddenly, Kurogane heard the door open. Sakura jumped up and ran to the open door. Kurogane knew this meant one thing. The kid was back and, worse, so was the mage.

"Princess, you're blushing. What happened?" Syaoran asked, noticing how red the princess's face was. Kurogane looked over his shoulder to see how the princess would react, not like he cared though. Sakura was stuttering something about an accident happening.

Fye then waltzed up to Kurogane. He smiled back at Syaoran. "Well, it's not like Kuro-pon did anything!" The mage said in a sing-song voice. Although he had said something that made him sound like he hadn't done anything, which he hadn't, his tone of voice said otherwise.

"Who the Hell're you calling Kuro-pon?!" Kurogane asked angrily, as he glared at the mage who was standing beside him.

Sakura looked to the ground nervously, not wanting to say what really happened. Syaoran became immediately worried. "Princess, are you alright?!" The boy asked. Syaoran then looked at Kurogane. "What happened?!" The kid asked him.

Before Kurogane was able to say a single word, the mage spoke up. "So... Kuro-tan did something improper to a girl?! Kuro-tan, how could you!" Fye said, obviously joking. Although, it still pissed Kurogane off.

"Kuro-tan's a pervert! Kuro-tan's a pervert!" Mokona chanted, adding on to how angry Kurogane was. And, as Mokona kept chanting the phrase, the mage began to chant with him.

Sakura then began to speak up. "W-wait! Kurogane-san just woke me from a nightmare. I then accidentally fell of the bed on top of him." She explained to them, nervously, since she was still very disturbed by the awkward situation she'd been in only minutes earlier.

Fye then let out a huge yawn. "Well... I guess we should be going to sleep now, ne?" Fye said tiredly. "Although, I wouldn't let Kuro-tan sleep next to Sakura-chan." He said, with a smirk. And, this only pissed Kurogane off even more.

"How about this?! I'll sleep outside!" He growled, as he walked outside angrily. He then slammed the door behind him.

Sakura was about to follow him outside, when Syaoran placed a hand on her shoulder. "Come, Princess. Let's get some rest." He said, with a smile on his face.


	2. Let Her Sleep

It was the middle of the night now, and everyone was fast asleep. Well, everyone except for Sakura. She kept thinking about what had happened earlier that day with Kurogane. And, she was greatly curious at to why this kept her from sleeping. Eventually not being able to stand laying in the bed anymore, Sakura got up and walked outside, softly and quietly closing the door behind her. She noticed Kurogane asleep on the hard, wooden porch floor. He was sleeping on his back, and there was a huge smile on his face. Or... Maybe that was how he always looked when he was snoring. And, there was one thing about him sleeping that always made her giggle. When he slept, drool always came out of his mouth.

But, the moment she giggled, Kurogane's eyes snapped open. _'What the Hell does that damn mage want now?!' _He thought, about to pull out his sword. But, he stopped when he saw Sakura. This was one of the last people he expected to be awoken by in the middle of the night. "Sakura... Why exactly did you wake me up?" He asked irritably, as he sat up and wiped the drool from his face.

Sakura sat down beside him and said, "I was thinking about earlier..." She told him nervously. Her voice came out in almost a whisper.

Kurogane shrugged. "What about it?" He asked, tiredly. _'Damn... I'm not awake enough to worry about this...'_ He thought, irritably.

Sakura sighed. "It's been keeping me up all night. I mean, I keep trying to sleep, but I can't. I just keep seeing and thinking about what happened earlier. It just keeps replaying in my head." She told him, nervously. "I don't know why it's keeping me up..." She told him, as she suddenly leaned against him.

This had surprised Kurogane, but he didn't say anything about it. And, within a few minutes, Sakura was fast asleep. Kurogane didn't move, despite there being a girl leaning against him, specifically Syaoran's girl. _'If she needs to sleep... Let her sleep...'_ He thought, calmly. When he felt the girl shivering, he put an arm around her, to keep her warm. He knew either way what was going on would be nearly unexplainable, so he decided it was better to keep her warm than leave her shivering. He closed his eyes, ready to go back to sleep. And, he did go back to sleep, with Sakura leaning against him.

Despite Kurogane knowing that there would be many difficulties with the mage and the kid the next morning, because of this, he didn't care. Right now, all he cared was that she was warm and happy. And, unlike so many times before, he merely smiled as he slept.

-------

Okay... So, this was a short chapter. Sorry. I didn't have many ideas for the next chapter anyways. So, yeah. Enjoy.


	3. The Explanation

The next day arrived quicker than expected. Syaoran was the first to get up. He looked at the bed where Sakura was, and immediately became worried when he didn't see her there. "Princess? Princess?!" He called. There wasn't an answer. However, this did wake Fye up.

"Syaoran-kun... What's wrong?" The mage asked him tiredly, as he sat up and yawned.

Syaoran replied, "The princess! She's gone!!!" He said, nervously and loudly.

Fye stood up and stretched. "I'll check outside..." Fye said, as he began to walk outside. Behind him, Fye thought he could hear the boy ask why he thought Sakura was outside. "Just a feeling. Plus, that's where Kuro-tan is." Fye responded calmly, as he walked out the door with Syaoran following him. Once out there, they both saw something neither of them thought they'd ever see.

Syaoran was shocked, and was unable to say a word. Fye waved a hand in front of the kid's face. "Syaoran-kun...? You still there?" He asked.

Syaoran nodded. Then asked, nervously. "How long do you think they've been like that?"

The moment he said this, both Kurogane and Sakura awoke from their rest. _'What the Hell? Why're they staring at me?'_ Kurogane thought, a little annoyed by Fye and Syaoran just standing there.

_'Syaoran-kun and Fye-san... are staring at me? Why?'_ Sakura wondered, as she looked up at the tall blonde man and her brown-haired friend. Then, they both remembered what happened last night.

Kurogane was the first to realize this, as he noticed he had been sitting up and his arm was around Sakura. He immediately released Sakura and stood up, looking away from the surprised Syaoran and Fye in front of him. Sakura also quickly stood up. "S-Syaoran-kun, this isn't what it looks like!" She told him, nervously. _'...When did I fall asleep last night? All I remember is that I couldn't sleep and, then... Oh, right. I went outside and leaned against Kurogane-san and then, I fell asleep...'_ The princess thought.

Syaoran then asked, "Princess, what really did happen, then?" He sounded like what he'd seen had hurt him greatly.

Sakura kept trying to say something, but she could never get it right. So, after a while, Kurogane told Syaoran for her. "Sakura wasn't able to sleep because of her... accident, yesterday. The thought kept replaying itself, keeping her from sleeping. So, she came outside to talk to me and woke me up. She sat down next to me, and leaned against me for some reason. And, then she fell asleep. Since she was shivering, I put my arm around her, to keep her warm. And, then I fell asleep. That's all." He said, irritably.

Syaoran merely looked at Sakura and asked, "Is this true?" Since Sakura still wasn't able to say anything, she merely nodded.

Suddenly a gust of wind blew Sakura's feather to them. Syaoran didn't react first, most likely seeing as how he had his back to the feather. So, Kurogane ran up to the feather, jumped, and caught it. And, from inside the house, Mokona could be heard, shouting, "Mekyo!" Kurogane then walked back to Sakura, and gave her the feather. As usual it went inside her, and she fainted. But, since Syaoran wasn't close enough, Kurogane caught her. He then picked her up, surprisingly, like a gentleman would. Kurogane said nothing to either Fye or Syaoran, as he headed back inside.

Kurogane looked at Mokona and said, "White Pork Bun, are there in any more feathers in this world?" In response, Mokona shook it's head 'no.' "Well, send us to the next world already." He replied, as Syaoran and Fye walked inside. And, with that, Mokona grew two huge wings out of it's back and sucked everyone into it's mouth, just like always, and sent the group to the next world.


	4. A Night Together

And, soon they'd made it to the next world. Kurogane had been expecting the mage to say something about this new world they'd appeared in. So, when he heard nothing, he was somewhat confused. He soon discovered that neither the mage or the kid were with him. Only Sakura was with him. _'Great... Just damn great...'_ He thought, as he tried to find shelter for the night.

As hee walked through the forest he appeared in, the princess awoke. "Where's... Syaoran-kun...?" She asked, with her eyes half open.

"He isn't here, Sakura." Kurogane answered.

"How about Fye-san?" She asked, with her eyes still half open.

"If that damn mage was here, do you think I'd be this calm?" Kurogane replied, irritably.

Sakura then fully opened her eyes. "So... It's just us, Kurogane-san?" She asked, as Kurogane put her down.

Kurogane nodded and began to walk away, with Sakura following him. Eventually, it began to rain. "Damn..." Kurogane muttered, as he kept on walking. After at least ten minutes of walking in the ran, Kurogane looked at Sakura _'She's... soaking wet...'_ Kurogane thought, _'Wait... Why the Hell do I care?'_ He frowned, as he wondered what he should do.

After five minutes of walking, Kurogane decided what to do. "Sakura..." He said.

She looked up at him. "Yes, Kurogane-san?" She asked him.

"Come here." He told her. So, Sakura walked up to him. "Get under my cape." He said. When Sakura looked up at him, obviously confused, Kurogane explained, "It'll keep you dry." So, Sakura nodded, went under his cape, and continued to walk next to him. When Kuogane felt Sakura shivering, he put his arm around her, to keep her warm.

Eventually, they found shelter for the night: the inside of a tree. "Sakura, I'll go in first, to see if it's safe." He told her calmly, as Sakura got out from under his cape. Then, Kurogane crawled into the tree from by crawling into the large opening near the ground. He then brushed away any spider webs in there, so the princess wouldn't worry or be afraid. "Sakura, come on in." He said, as he sat down.

"Okay! Coming!" Se saud cheerfully, as she crawled in after him and sat enxt to him.

As the princess was about to say something, Kurogane said, "Yes, Sakura. We'll find the kid tomorrow."

However, Sakura shook her head. "No, Kurogane-san... That's not what I wanted to say."

Kurogane looked at her strangely. He hadn't been expecting her to say that. _'Not about the kid? Then, what did she want to say?' _He wondered. "So, Sakura... What did you want to say?" He asked.

Sakura sighed. There was a troubled look in her eyes.

"Sakura? You okay?" He asked.

"Yes, Kurogane-san. I'm fine." Sakura told him. "It's just that I can't stop thinking about you." She told him, nervously. As she said this, her voice grew quieter and quieter.

"Sakura..." Kurogane's voice trailed off, as he tried to think of what to say. _'What is she saying? She can't be serious... Can she?'_ He thought, as his emotions changed from being calm to being somewhat confused. "Sakura, let's get some rest now." He said calmly, as he closed his eyes.

Sakura nodded. "Okay." Like she had done the night before, she leaned against Kurogane. And, then they both fell asleep for the night.


	5. Meanwhile

Meanwhile, Syaoran was worried sick about the princess. _'Where could she be?'_ He wondered, as he stared out of a second-story window.

"Syaoran-kun?" Fye asked, as he came in, carrying Mokona.

'Yes, Fye-san?"

"You're thinking about her again, aren't you?" Fye asked the boy.

"The princess?" Syaoran asked, a little surprised that the mage brought this subject up.

"Yes... Syaoran-kun, don't worry about Sakura-chan. She's with Kurogane. I'm sure of that." The mage said, "I mean, he was carrying her when Mokona transported us here. So, just relax. We'll find them tommorrow."

Syaoran had been about to say something, but quickly shut his mouth. _'Could I honestly tell him?'_ He wondered. Finally, Syaoran decided what he would do. He sighed, then said, "That's just what I'm afraid of."

Syaoran looked up at Fye, who seemed to be really puzzled. "Syaoran-kun..." Fye said, as a frown appeared upon his now-serious face, "Sakura-chan was happy with him, wasn't she?"

"Y-yeah, but..." His voice trailed off.

"And, you love her... Don't you?" Fye asked Syaoran, who was becoming more and more confused by every word the mage was saying.

"O-of course I do Fye-san!" Syaoran blurted out.

"Then, why can't you let her go?" He asked.

"What...? What do you mean...?" Syaoran replied.

"If you love someone, you need to learn how to let them go..." Fye said, as a small smile appeared on the mage's face. "I should know what it's like to lose someone you care about... Just, trust me, Syaoran-kun. They'll be fine." He told Syaoran, "So, let's get some rest. Okay?"

So, they went to their beds, which were right next to each other. As soon as Syaoran thought Fye was asleep, he raised his arm above him and stared at his hand. "Sakura-chan... Why...?" He asked the silence around him. He sighed, shaking his head, and pulled his arm close to him. He then turned to his side. Syaoran hen closed his eyes and fell asleep.


	6. A Morning in the Woods

The next morning seemed to come way too early for both Sakura and Kurogane. While Sakura was still asleep, Kurogane got up and wrapped his cape around the princess, like a blanket. He then went outside to train. Sometime later, Sakura awoke. When she noticed Kurogane was gone, she quickly tried to get up, only to fall back to the ground. _'Kurogane-san's cape? What's it doing wrapped around me?'_ The princess wondered, as she fixed the cape so that she was wearing it. She then left the tree. Once outside, she began to worry since she didn't see him. "Kurogane-san?!" She called out.

Kurogane walked over to her. He hadn't been too far away when Sakura had called out to him. "Eh?" He replied.

Then, Sakura began to run over to him. However, she tripped on the cape she was wearing. "Sakura!" He shouted, as he grabbed the princess's hand and pulled her close to him. So, Kurogane fell to the ground, with the princess on top of him once more. At first, none of them moved. Sakura merely blushed. Then, as Kurogane began to sit up, Sakura frowned. Kurogane stopped what he was doing. "Sakura, what is it?" He asked.

"Kurogane-san, can we stay like this for just a little while longer?" She replied, as she rested her head against Kurogane's chest.

Kurogane, who was somewhat surprised by Sakura's response, merely layed back down said, "Of course..." So, there both of them lay. After a half-hour or so of laying there together, they both heard footsteps. "Sakura, get back inside the tree. And... Could you give me my cape back?" He said.

Sakura quickly nodded and got up, taking off Kurogane's cape. Kurogane took the cape and put it on. He then took his sword out, as he prepared to fight whomever was coming. Meanwhile, Sakura was hiding, but still watching Kurogane. Then, two people showed up. _'Great... Here come the mage and the kid again...'_ He thought irritably, _'Oh... And, that annoying white pork bun is here too. Great. Just great.'_ Kurogane thought.

Syaoran looked angry, but Kurogane could only guess why. As for Fye... Well, the mage was smiling, as usual. "Hiya, Kuro-pon!" The mage said as he waltzed up to Kurogane. "Whatcha doin'?"

Kurogane ignored what the mage had called him. He wanted to answer that he was merely trying to protect Sakura, but he knew the outcome would be bad. So, instead he replied, "Practicing..."

Syaoran then said, angrily, "Does laying with Sakura-hime on top of you count as practicing?!"

Fye and Kurogane looked down at Syaoran. "Heheh... Syaoran-kun wasn't too happy about seeing Sakura-chan with you." The mage said.

"Isn't that obvious?" Kurogane replied.

Meanwhile, Sakura thought, _'S-Syaoran-kun's yelling at Kurogane-san... Why?'_ She wondered. She then quickly walked over to Kurogane. Since the princess was still tired, she leaned against Kurogane. He merely looked down at her and smirked. Sakura looked at Syaoran. "Syaoran-kun... Why are you yelling at Kurogane-san?" She asked, with a sorrowful tone of voice.

"Princess..." Syaoran replied, worried about how sorrowful the princess sounded, "I was just trying to protect you."

"But, how does yelling at Kurogane-san protect me?" The princess asked.

Syaoran was silent, as Sakura looked up at Kurogane. The look in her eyes was telling Kurogane to explain to Syaoran what really happened. "Listen, kid, Sakura tripped so I tried to catch her by grabbing her hand and pulling her close to me. I landed on the ground, with the princess on top of me. When I tried to get up, Sakura asked me if we could stay that way a little while longer, so I let her. Sometime later, we heard you two show up. That's all..." He responded.

Suddenly, Mokona shouted, "Mekyo!!!"

"Hyuu! Mokona that great timing!" Fye said, "Well, we might as well get out of this forest. I'm pretty sure we'll get some good clues for finding the feather once we're in the city." And, with that, the group headed back towards the city that Syaoran and Fye had been spent the night in.


	7. Yearly Events?

It was about an hour's walk to the city. Sakura kept falling behind, and eventually Syaoran began to carry her. Kurogane looked at the city, when they first arrived. "This is it?" He asked, sarcastically.

Fye looked at Kurogane. "Were you expecting something more, Kuro-wanwan?" The mage asked him, with a smile.

"Would you quit with the nicnames?!" Kurogane yelled, irritably.

Sometime afterwards, some children ran past them. One of them stopped and looked up at the four people whom stood in front of the city. "Hey, guys! Look! Visitors!" The child told the other kids she was chasing.

The childeren all looked up at the four. "Do you think they're travelers?" A little boy asked what appeared to be his twin.

"Well, they are wearing funny clothes..." His twin, replied, "So... Yeah. I think they are travelers."

Fye began to chuckle as he looked at Kurogane. "Did you hear him? He thinks your funny."

Kurogane glared at the mage and snapped, "If I'm funny, so are you!"

The kids looked at each other and shrugged. Then, the two twin boys of the group said at the same time, "You must be here for the yearly events!"

Syaoran looked at Fye, then at Kurogane, as if asking what they were talking about. "Yearly... events?" He asked, as he looked at the children once more.

A girl replied, "Yeah. Yearly events. Just a fun little thing we do every year. We have prizes for the people who win the events, too."

"Events? Like what?" Kurogane asked the little girl, as a glare appeared on his face.

The girl quickly hid behind the twins. The oldest looking of the group stepped forward. "Events? Well... This year there's slow dancing, singing, swordfights, and other things like that." He explained with a shrug. "I hear if you're the one who wins the most events, you get some really powerful object that looks like a feather or something."

Syaoran looked down and smiled at Sakura. _'Her feather...'_ He thought.

"So... When do these events begin? And, where do we sign up?" Fye asked.

"We'll take you there. Just follow us." The twins said, as they began leading the group towards a very large building that looked like a castle.


	8. A New Building and Several New Names

So, the group was led to a church. Sadly, none of them knew what it was. Finally, the princess asked, "Is it a castle...?" The building certainly would be big enough to be called that, wouldn't it? Even if it would be just a small castle...

The twins laughed and shook their heads. "No, Silly! It's a church! You just gotta sign yourselves in here." And, so, a smiling Fye D. Flourite nodded his head and went in, before any could even think of stopping him. Although, Kurogane had been about to, since he'd been irritated at the thought of having yet another ridiculous nicname to deal with. But, he'd been just a little too late.

Eventually, the blonde returned, after the kids had all left. "Well, then... We're all signed up and I even gave us new names!" As the mage said he'd given them new names, Kurogane's eyebrow twitched, knowing something bad was about to happen. "Syaoran-kun is Little Puppy." Uh-oh... "Sakura-chan is Little Kitty." The ninja had heard these names before. "I'm Big Kitty." And, he knew exactly what was after the mage's last comment... "And, Kurgy's Big Puppy!!!"

As soon as he said this, Kurogane lost all control of his temper and began to chase after the magician and, after some time, they managed to stop their little chasing 'game'. "Fye-san..." Syaoran-kun said, "Why don't you tell us what you signed us up for?"

"Oh, right... I was getting to that, if Kuro-puppy hadn't had such a large reaction." Fye said, a smile still on his face, "Well, Mokona and I are handling something called 'magic tricks'. Kurgy's taking care of the swordfights..." And, on he went, until each were well informed of what they were doing. Finally, he added, "Oh, and Kuro-chii and Sakura-chan are going to have to try dancing."

_'And, here I thought the night couldn't get any worse...'_ The ninja thought, while Fye led them back to the hotel room he'd also managed to get for them.


	9. A Talent Show

The days passed quickly, as everyone tried so hard to do well. The ones that worked the hardest of all were Kurogane and Sakura, specifically on dancing. It was absolutely terrible at first... The princess would move so gracefully and the ninja was stuck just trying to keep up, which he failed at for some time. But, after a few pointers from Fye, the ninja began to improve.

Finally, the night had arrived when the yearly events was taking place, the group rushed to the church, wearing this world's clothes. Everything seemed to go somewhat smoothly. Fye and Mokona had managed to make people 'ooh' and 'ahh' over their magic tricks and, also, the magician had made people laugh like complete morons with a few simple comedy routines. Kurogane easily defeated the opponents in the swordfights, but Syaoran... He had some trouble just trying to handle... whatever he was doing.

As the lights began to dim, Sakura walked up to the stage. Stopping by Kurogane, she whispered, "Wish me luck, Kurogane-san..." Then, she walked up to the stage and nervously sang into the microphone. But, she didn't sound nervous. Actually, she sounded quite beautiful, especially with the sound of a piano playing near her. At first, Kurogane didn't understand the words but, as he really began to listen, he discovered that the song was about a person of extremely high status who was in love with a mere rogue, and vice versa.

And, finally, as her song ended, everyone was led to the ballroom floor. Several amazing dancers were up there and finally it was Kurogane and Sakura's turn. Gently taking his hand, she whispered, "I'm scared, Kurogane-san..."

His reply was, "Of what?"

"I don't know..." She whispered, as they walked to the center of the room. They danced fine for some time, before the princess began to hesitate and her moves began to become a bit clumsy.

"Sakura...?" He asked, seeing her eyes begin to close. Suddenly, she fainted. It was lucky the ninja had the girl in his arms. If he hadn't, he wasn't sure he would've caught her. Doctors rushed to her and took her to a room, with Kurogane and the others close behind...


	10. An Illness?

Sakura's 'healing' time took much longer than usual, they realized. "This isn't like before, is it, Syaoran-kun?" Fye said, with that rare frown on his face.

"No, it isn't... I wonder if she's okay."

Kurogane crossed his arms, looking away from the princess he sat by. "She rarely wakes up anymore! Do you THINK she's okay?!" He snapped. The others looked at him, shocked. The ninja had always seemed cold and distant, so him caring this much about Sakura was a shocker. But, not as much as it would've been if it hadn't been for their recent 'experiences.' "Get out..." Kurogane suddenly ordered.

"Kurogane-san...?" Syaoran asked, a bit more surprised.

"I need some time with her... alone..." So, after some more orders, he got them to leave. As Mokona was about to leave as well, the ninja said, "Except you, White Pork Bun." So, Mokona went over to the ninja, sitting on the bed, beside the princess. "I want to talk to Yuko." He said.

"H-huh...?" Mokona asked, confused, knowing he hated the witch.

"I told you, I want to talk to that witch!" So, Mokona got in contact with the Dimensional Witch. Before she could say anything, he said, "Can you save Sakura?" It was strange, but it was like Kurogane could tell she was almost to the point of death.

The witch nodded, then said, "Yes, I can save her, but..."


	11. The Only Way

The witch nodded, then said, "Yes, I can save her, but..."

The ninja's eyes narrowed. _'There's always a 'but', isn't there?_' He thought angrily. "But what?" He asked, as soon as the witch paused.

"But, you have to give up the thing you value most."

Kurogane was shocked, not quite understanding was Yuko was saying. "I gave you the Ginryuu already, witch. Remember?" He told her.

It seemed like Yuko was trying her best not to laugh at Kurogane, and was failing miserably. "You really don't know?" There was a silent pause, showing he clearly didn't know something. "You have a new thing you value most..."

"And, what would that be?!" He snapped.

"Your relationship..."

"What're you talking about?!"

"The thing you value most is no longer an object. Your relationship with that girl... That's what you value most now." There was a pause, before she continued, "What does that girl mean to you?"

Kurogane's crimson gaze left the witch, as he turned to look at the princess. "She's..." He thought back to everything that happened recently. "She's my princess, my friend... and..." He paused, clenching his fist as if to hold back tears, as he turned to look at Yuko. "...And, she's the person I care for most. But... I'm willing to give her up, to save her."

Yuko nodded. His situation was quite like Syaoran's was, she realized. "Alright. But, let me warn you, she will not remember these past few days or the love you two once shared. Are you sure you're willing to give her up?"

"Yes!" He said, "Now, save her before it's too late!" And, so the Dimensional Witch did. It wasn't long after that Sakura finally awoke.

Her eyes half-open, she looked at Kurogane, confused by him being there. "Kurogane-san...?" She asked. The ninja, who'd almost fallen asleep, instantly woke up completely.

"Hai, Sakura?"

"Where's Syaoran-kun?" The words stung, but he'd expected this. As soon as she asked this, Syaoran returned. "Syaoran-kun!" The princess cried out, apparently fully awake again, as she got out of bed and ran to the one she now loved again.

"Princess, we should go now. They're waiting for us..." He said and, with that said and done, the two left the room. Sadly, all the ninja could do was watch the princess be happy around the one she cared for, since he couldn't take his eyes off of her. But, even from the beginning, he'd expecting an ending like this. He knew it wouldn't work...

...Because black steel and cherry blossoms aren't meant to be together...


End file.
